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BACK PAIN BLOG UK IS A PERSONAL JOURNEY OF A CHRONIC BACK PAIN SUFFERER. MY SITE IS FULL OF THE LATEST TREATMENTS, PRODUCT REVIEWS, THERAPIES, DRUGS, TIPS AND WEBSITES ON BACK PAIN, FIBROMYALGIA and ARTHRITIC CONDITIONS.
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3232NEVER NEVER GIVE UP – MANTRAS TO HELP YOU FEEL BETTER…https://backpainbloguk.com/2019/01/21/never-ever-give-up-mantras-to-help-you-feel-better/
https://backpainbloguk.com/2019/01/21/never-ever-give-up-mantras-to-help-you-feel-better/#commentsMon, 21 Jan 2019 10:23:35 +0000http://backpainbloguk.com/2019/01/21/never-ever-give-up-mantras-to-help-you-feel-better/One of my closest friends gave me this lovely tile with the words ‘Never, never give up’ to help me on my hardest days. I have it where I can see it every day to inspire and motivate me when I’m down.

Four simple words is all it takes to work for me but I have to admit I use mantras from inspirational people. I would repeat and repeat the saying when I go to bed. Like some people count sheep to go to sleep you can always repeat your mantra over and over again as you drift off to sleep.

According to Wikipediaa mantra is a sacred utterance, a numinous sound, a syllable, word or phonemes, or group of words in Sanskrit believed by practitioners to have psychological and spiritual powers. Mantra meditation helps to induce an altered state of consciousness. A mantra may or may not have a syntactic structure or literal meaning.Wikipedia

You can find a number of videos on mantras for pain on YouTube to keep repeating to yourself and you can also buy this book, Healing Mantras on the subject, which you can also listen to. Healing Mantras by Thomas Ashley-Ferrand which has four star reviews and one review saying, I love this book – it provides a really interesting insight into the power of sound and its significance to different religions and ethnic groups. The mantras are fun & satisfying to learn and come with background information, explaining the meaning and origin of each. He also gives examples of how they have been used by himself or others & the perceived results. Overall it’s a very positive pursuit & gives any reader another tool with which to influence their own life.

Health.com say as little as 30 seconds of using a mantra can dampen unpleasant sensations, says Ellen Slawsby, PhD, director of Pain Services at the Benson Henry Institute at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. Slawsby recommends a picking neutral or positive word or phrase rather than a sound.

“That’s using something inborn, an internal mechanisms to elicit your own endorphins or endogenous morphine,” she says.

Simple words and phrases have the power to interrupt negativity and invite change in life. Discover how mantras can affect your well-being.Sonima explains how They have been around for at least 3,000 years, but mantras are having a mainstream moment. We meditate on them. We find them in pop songs that encourage us to “Let It Go” and get “Happy.” We tape them to our fridges and computers, pin them to our Pinterest boards, InstaQuote them on Instagram. On her website she has nine empowering mantras to shift your mindset.

Putting healing words into our thoughts is a personal thing but if we find any benefit from this type of meditation then it certainly has to be worth trying.

‘What we fear doing most is usually what we most need to do’ – Timothy Ferriss

For anyone suffering from fibromyalgia, knowing where to apply self-acupressure may help ease some of the symptoms associated with the disorder. I am suffering greatly at the moment with fatigue and nonrestorative sleep due to fibromyalgia and bulging disc problems in my neck and lower back.

I seem to fall asleep fine but then I am awake for hours before I settle again especially during a cold spell. Last night I decided to start trying acupressure which is something I have done in the past but it’s not easy to get to certain points by yourself.

I got my phone out and looked up the best pressure points to work on my shoulders which I hoped would have a knock on effect on my neck pain.

To help ease shoulder pain they say you should press your thumbs or middle fingers on to the top of your shoulders where the outer collarbones join the shoulders. Press the thumbs or middle fingers to these points and massage for at least a minute several times.

According to Healthline Acupuncture has beenextensively studiedas a treatment for neck pain. While there issome evidencethat acupuncture works for neck pain, acupressure is not universally accepted as a neck pain treatment. Researchers wonder, for example, if the needles from acupuncture stimulate chemicals in your body that provide pain relief. If that is indeed the case, stimulating pressure points with massage instead of needles wouldn’t provide the same pain relief.

But that’s not to say that acupressure should be ruled out as a holistic neck pain treatment. Stimulating pressure points may relieve neck pain and soothe aching muscles. According toseveralreviewsof the scientific literature, the answer is that we just don’t know.

It says it’s a easy to understand and highly visual book with step by step guidelines for effective self treatment.

Acupressure and Acupuncture both use same points on Surface of Human Body for healing the problems. But Acupuncture is applied through Needle and Acupressure is applied through Pressure of Hand (Especially by Thumb and Fingers). Acupressure gives pressure to such points that results in Releasing Muscular Aches, Enhance Blood Circulation and gives relaxation to the Human Body.

The theory and practice ofacupuncture originatedin China. Itwasfirst mentioned and recorded in documents dating a few hundred years before the Common Era. Earlier instead of needles sharpened stones and long sharp bones were used around 6000 BCE foracupuncturetreatment.

Acupressure is generally said that in a Chinese Medicine Method, but it was firstly discovered in India whichlatterlydisappeared. Acupressure nowadays has many methods as Reflexology, Meridian and Sujok Therapy. Reflexology is an American invention, Meridian is Chinese invention while Sujok is discovered by Korea.

Acufinder explain that aside from these points, it is important to recognize that psychological stresses can play a significant role in the presentation of fibromyalgia. Employing self-acupressure can help one regain emotional well-being and better control the onset of symptoms. For best self-acupressure results, apply gentle yet firm pressure from your middle-finger as you make tiny circular motions. This may be done as little as once a day or as much as once every hour.

Here are some locations on the body where self-acupressure can help to alleviate symptoms of fibromyalgia:

Yintang –located between the eyes, at the level of the eyebrows. This point is renowned for its ability to soothe anxiety and promote a general relaxation of the body. Stimulation of this point may help with obsessive and unproductive thoughts.

Ear Shen Men –located on the upper portion of the ear in the triangular fossa, nearly a perfect fit to gently place a fingertip and press. The name of this point speaks for itself, stimulation here brings the potential for great relief from any kind of physical and/or emotional pain, metaphorically allowing the patient to enter ‘heaven.’

Ren 17 –located in the center of chest at the level of the fourth intercostal space, at the same level as the nipples. This is a great point to help relieve the sensation of rising anxiety and help the body physically relax as well.

Pericardium 6 –located on the lower, inner side of arm, four finger widths from the wrist crease and between the two tendons in the middle of the arm. Gentle pressing can help promote a sense of well-being and relief from nausea.

Stomach 36 –located about four finger widths down from the outer eye of the knee, then over about the width of the middle finger, from the shin bone. This invaluable point is known for its ability to promote general wellness by stimulating the immune system, stopping pain anywhere in the body and calming the shen. According to the theory of acupuncture and Oriental Medicine, “calming the shen” refers to the stabilization of negative mental and emotional states.

Carpal tunnel syndrome is a diagnosis that anybody dreads hearing. It results in living with the constant discomfort of tingling, burning, pain and numbness, involving any portion of your hands from the tip of your fingers up to the arms. All of this because of a disturbance in a single nerve. The good news is that timely measures can remove the root cause of the issue and revert the condition fully. Let’s look at the most important facts and misconceptions, related to carpal tunnel.

It All Boils Down To A Nerve

Yes, the culprit is a single nerve in your body, called the median nerve and which begins from the forearm and goes straight up to the thumb, middle and index finger of each hand (more on that here). It also spreads to a part of the ring finger, where it is located in the so called carpal tunnel canal. If blood flow to the nerve becomes obstructed, your hand starts to hurt and you can feel an associated numbness and tingling sensation.

If you spend a lot of time behind the steering wheel or on the phone, chances to fall victim to the carpal tunnel are high. The symptoms might make you shift or shake your hands instinctively in an attempt to get rid of the unpleasant sensation. Unfortunately, they might worsen at night and lead to troubled sleep and insomnia for the patient.

Don’t Feel Guilty For Chatting And IMing

While scientists are yet to pinpoint a single cause behind getting afflicted with carpal tunnel, there are several factors which contribute to turning risk factors into a diagnosis. They vary from genetics through obesity and inflammation to pregnancy and a possible tightness of an individual’s carpal tunnel by birth. Rheumatoid arthritis, menopause and diabetes are also on the list of usual suspects. Find out more at gppconline.com/paul-paterson-md/dr-paterson-carpal-tunnel.

Repetitive movements with the hands such as typing are not considered the main cause for the condition. They are, however, a very likely trigger in cases where the abovementioned factors are present.

The Sooner You Act, The Better

Despite the fact that your symptoms may come and go, untreated carpal tunnel tends to get worse over time. An exception would be if you remove the root cause, such as weight gain during pregnancy that’s resolved once you give birth, for example.

If you suspect you might have the condition, waiting for it to go away is hardly a good idea. The sooner you see a doctor, undergo a physical exam, an x-ray or even an electromyogram to see if there are disturbances in the way your hands function, the quicker you will be able to take measures and start on the path to curing your carpal tunnel, before your state, and your symptoms, become severe.

Levels Of Treatment

The two main kinds of carpal tunnel treatment involve either reducing the swelling by the use of medication or broadening of the canal in order to avoid compressing the nerve. The first is usually achieved by anti-inflammatory drugs of non-steroidal origin. Applying ice to the area is another way to alleviate symptoms. While these will certainly provide some momentous relief, it is definitely not a long-term solution.

For more advanced cases that have not yet reached a stage that requires surgical intervention, a physician might prescribe sleeping with an immobilized hand with the help of a wrist splint. It has the function of keeping the hand straight and preventing involuntary positions that would aggravate the pain and lead to pains, sharp enough to wake the patient from their sleep. Corticosteriod injections around the affected area are another successful step that might provide a bit longer-term effect that is likely to last for month or even eradicate milder cases of the carpal tunnel. If all else fails, however, a final step to dealing with the condition remains the option of surgery.

A Word On Prevention

If you are one of those people whose work involves repetitive movements, taking frequent breaks and changing your hands’ positions might prove to be key to carpal tunnel prevention. Mild stretches and exercise are always welcome, as well, but you should first consult your physician about that, especially if you are suffering from certain conditions. Improving your standing or sitting positions by an ergonomic environment is one of the best decisions you can make to reduce your risk.

Of course, if you already have carpal tunnel, prevention is not the only measure you will have to take. Contacting a medical professional about the most appropriate measures in your individual case is the best course of action. And the sooner adequate measures are undertaken, the better your chances of overcoming and even eradicating the condition.

]]>https://backpainbloguk.com/2019/01/17/things-you-need-to-know-about-carpal-tunnel-syndrome/feed/1barmac5FATE TAKES TWO HANDS, MEMOIRS OF A PHYSIOTHERAPIST, Free on Kindle (limited time)…https://backpainbloguk.com/2019/01/14/fate-takes-two-hands-memoirs-of-a-physiotherapist-free-on-kindle-limited-time/
https://backpainbloguk.com/2019/01/14/fate-takes-two-hands-memoirs-of-a-physiotherapist-free-on-kindle-limited-time/#commentsMon, 14 Jan 2019 19:04:42 +0000http://backpainbloguk.com/2019/01/14/fate-takes-two-hands-memoirs-of-a-physiotherapist-free-on-kindle-limited-time/The book ‘Fate Takes Two Hands’s Memoirs of a Physiotherapist’ was written by my mother in law who wrote about her life before she became a physiotherapist during the Second World War.

Based on a true story this is a heartwarming tale of a wartime working life of a physiotherapist during the Second World War. Born in Manchester in 1916, the author went with her parents to a pantomime to see Peter Pan. From that day forward she set her sights on being on the stage with her name in lights.

However, her mother and father had other plans for her. She tried every trick in the book to avoid going down their career route, and shares her love, loss and friendships to pursue her dream of being an actress.

That was until she met Audrey, who changed her direction in life into the hospital theatre rather than the dramatic theatre.

Separated from her beloved family she bravely endures a trip on her own across the world to be with her loved one, and writes in detail of the patients she was treating during the war.

I promised my mother-in-law before she passed away that I would do my up,OST to get it printed for her and after reading it, I knew I had to give it a go. With no chapters or paragraphs and hand written in quite a difficult script it did take me nearly 2 years to finish but I got there in the end.

From today until Thursday 17th January this book is free to read on Kindle as I would love some reviews from my readers on her book and the finished product. Many thanks.

As a true advocate of the Active Posture Shirt, I thought it only right to let my readers know of their offers on the shirt plus a chance to win one of their shirts.

If you haven’t heard of the Active Posture Shirt before then you really should read all about it as seen on ITV’s Lorraine Show, The Telegraph, USA Today, Forbes, Sports Illustrated, Los Angeles Times, Healthline and more. It makes sense that good posture will help anyone with spinal problems and I noticed a difference after wearing mine but I had no idea how many other people were looking for something like this for them.

It is obvious that to get the best ones of these tops/shirts to help with your posture and ease pain will definitely not be cheap but as with anything in life, you pay forwhat you get. I’ve only tried the posture correcting shirtfrom Active Posture at £99.95 so I cannot comment on any others that I have written about above, but it’s a trial and error for anyone wanting to give this a try and Active Posture do offer you a money back guarantee and has five stars from 803 reviews. So maybe that’s why I had so many readers on my review of this top.

There is 15% off the blue active posture shirt for women only (sorry gents) is a LIMITED EDITION COLOUR! which brings it down to £84.95 and if you opt into their newsletter you have the chance to win a free posture shirt 20.

Depression is quite common with people suffering from chronic pain. I mean who wouldn’t feel a bit low when trying to cope with constant pain but there is help out there to deal with this type of depression. Research shows that some of theseantidepressants may help with some kinds of long-lastingpain.

Web MD state that Doctors don’t know exactly why antidepressants help with pain. They may affect chemicals in your spinal cord — you may hear them called neurotransmitters — that send pain signals to yourbrain.

It’s important to note thatantidepressantsdon’t work on pain right away. It can be a week or so before you feel any better. In fact, you may not get their full effect for several weeks.

After my second spinal surgery I was put on a very low dose of an antidepressant which I took over a period of 20+years. I am still on this antidepressant ( Prozac) even though over the many years I haven taken it there have been numerous articles on the pros and cons of taking it for so long. In fact, only last year the Professor of Medicine whom I call my Medicine Man who I see on a regular basis, suggested that maybe I should stop taking it.

I started with reducing it to one every other day and had no ill effects except that I wasn’t feeling as perky as I usually am. I put it down to the fact that at that time last year I ways constantly going back and forth to stay at my Dads so that I could go and be with him in hospital. He was in three months and my sister and I would do three week shifts of going in for most of the day over a period of three weeks then coming home for a rest. Sadly Dad passed away in hospital by which stage I had already started increasing my drug to nearly what I had been on before as I had an even bigger reason for feeling low.

On the NHS website they say that even though a type of antidepressant called tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) weren’t originally designed to be painkillers, there’s evidence to suggest they’re effective in treating chronic (long-term) nerve pain in some people.

Chronic nerve pain, also known as neuropathic pain, is caused by nerve damage or other problems with the nerves, and is often unresponsive to regular painkillers, such asparacetamol.

Amitriptyline is a TCA that’s usually used to treat neuropathic pain. I also take this for my neuropathic pain and it also helps me to sleep better.

We are all different and try to deal with chronic pain, stress and even loss in different ways but for me personally I felt this one little pill I took every morning worked for me. When I went back for my review with my Medicine Man I told him what I had been through and said I felt for me personally it was one drug I would like to continue taking indefinitely if he felt that was safe. He said that every single person will have different views and reactions to different types of antidepressants but if I had found one that I truly felt helped me ‘feel good’ every day no matter what I was going through then he was happy for me to take it indefinitely.

I know there are lots and lots of alternative things to try for any type of depression from Cognitive Behavioural Therapy to Group Therapy and much more but I do feel that some people are nervous of taking medication on a long term basis but if that works for you, then why not.

Try everything that is available to you and when you find something that works for you then stick with it even it is taking a daily dose of medication. Feeling low and depressed is awful and most people in chronic pain must feel that at some stage but life really is to short to feel that way on a daily basis so why not try something just for you to help you feel better on the outside even if the pain on the inside is still there.

Some great websites and organisations that can help with chronic pain and depression are Away With Pain.

BLB Solicitors have a long list with links to UK support and help with depression from pain. The NHS also has details on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy in the UK and how to find a therapist.

]]>https://backpainbloguk.com/2019/01/11/dealing-with-depression-with-chronic-pain/feed/1barmac5WHY WE SHOULD ALL TRY YOGA FOR CHRONIC PAIN…https://backpainbloguk.com/2019/01/10/why-we-should-all-try-yoga-for-chronic-pain/
https://backpainbloguk.com/2019/01/10/why-we-should-all-try-yoga-for-chronic-pain/#commentsThu, 10 Jan 2019 10:27:44 +0000http://backpainbloguk.com/?p=20265338This great graphic which I found on Pinterest from My Southern Health shows how we can easily try some Yoga positions for chronic pain. Psychology Today write that chronic pain triggers changes in brain structure that are linked to depression, anxiety, and impaired cognitive function. New research shows that practising Yoga has the opposite effect on the brain and can relieve chronic pain.

Harvard Health points out that Yoga can help people with arthritis, fibromyalgia, migraine, low back pain, and many other types of chronic pain conditions. A study published in Annals of Internal Medicine found that among 313 people with chronic low back pain, a weekly yoga class increased mobility more than standard medical care for the condition. Another study published at nearly the same time found that Yoga was comparable to standard exercise therapy in relieving chronic low back pain.

A meta-analysis of 17 studies that included more than 1,600 participants concluded that yoga can improve daily function among people with fibromyalgia osteoporosis-related curvature of the spine. Practising Yoga also improved mood and psychosocial well-being.

]]>https://backpainbloguk.com/2019/01/10/why-we-should-all-try-yoga-for-chronic-pain/feed/2barmac5Try yoga techniques for chronic pain management. In this infographic, we share 8 poses can help ease your pain and stress. Learn more on My Southern Health.THE HEALING POWERS OF LAVENDER AND PEPPERMINT…https://backpainbloguk.com/2019/01/09/the-healing-powers-of-lavender-and-peppermint/
https://backpainbloguk.com/2019/01/09/the-healing-powers-of-lavender-and-peppermint/#commentsWed, 09 Jan 2019 11:48:34 +0000http://backpainbloguk.com/?p=20265336I have written many a post on my love of Lavender and all its healing powers in one form or another but if it’s combined with Peppermint you will find it even better.

One of my favourite ways to get the benefits of these oils is in the roller ball format. A great pack of three is by Tisserand who sell a Little Box of Mindfulness pack of three roller balls.

Clear your head & be present in the moment with their mindful pulse point roller balls made with 100% natural pure essential oils. BREATHE DEEP blend of Orange, Petitgrain & Coriander gives your mind a break when it’s time to stop. MIND CLEAR blend of Peppermint, Lavender & Lemon allows you to declutter your mind & find clarity. REAL CALM blend of Lavender, Bergamot & Patchouli helps you to take time out & feel serene.

Available from Amazon and other retailers for £8.68 – I keep mine in the drawer by my bed for if I am having a difficult night.

Another favourite of mine is The Cotswold Lavender Soothing Gel for £4.95 their finest lavender oil carefully blended with peppermint. This super combination will help to soothe everyday aches and pains. Apply to temples and pulse points. 20g glass jar.

Have you ever wondered if the coffee you grab in the morning or something you have eaten is contributing to your back pain?

We all know there are certain foods that you can eat that either hurt or help inflammation in your body, which may contribute to back pain. Foods like junk food, fast food, red meats, fried foods, pastries, and cakes are of course not good for you. They say that it’s the trans fat, saturated fats, and high glycemic index that can irritate inflammation and make your back pain worse.

On the other end of the spectrum there are foods like walnuts, blueberries, salmon, cod, and other fruits which are extremely good for your health. These foods are filled with Omega 3 fatty acids, antioxidants, and vitamin D. All of these foods are great for you for a lot of different reasons, but when it comes to your back, these all help to reduce inflammation which takes pressure off of your spinal nerves and relieves back pain.

There are some coffees which are extremely sugary, high-calorie coffees that you can get at coffee shop chains. These types of coffees have high glycemic indices and many of them contain a high amount of saturated fats in them and are definitely not good for your inflammation and your back pain.

But what about straight black coffee without all the sugar. Well, apparently black coffee is a lot better for you and it doesn’t really have the “not good for you” ingredients. But it also doesn’t have any of the good ingredients either.

Coffee has caffeine in it, and caffeine can actually elevate levels of anxiety that you experience. This is why people that get the jitters from too much coffee seem a little jumpier than normal. The coffee is putting them on edge and sending their bodies into the fight or flight condition and when you are in fight or flight, your muscles are a bit more tense than normal, mostly to prepare you for a quick escape.

Consequently, if you have back pain, this isn’t good news. Even a little bit of muscle tension can cause your piriformis or psoas muscle to irritate your sciatic nerve and cause back pain.

So, although there probably isn’t much real danger in drinking a cup of coffee in the morning, it can contribute to back pain issues.

According to Elle, Nutrition is one part of a three-pronged approach that Dr. Todd Sinett, chiropractor, certified trainer, and author of the recent book 3 Weeks to a Better Back, uses to tackle back pain. His method also examines these ailments structurally (muscle and bones) and emotionally (everyday stress), but diet is definitely the piece of the puzzle that barely anyone considers.

Dr. Sinett says you can’t pinpoint what back pain caused by diet feels like, exactly–it could range from severe lower back pain to a chronic aching neck. He notes that the science connecting diet and back pain applies to all levels of discomfort, concluding that eating a large amount of inflammatory food (more on that below) can cause muscles to contract without relaxing. If that persists over a long period of time, it can cause back spasms and irritation. Major dietary causes of backpain, he says, include excessive caffeine, alcohol, and sugar–all things that increase cortisol levels. When there’s excess cortisol in the body, connective tissue can get inflamed, causing pain.

Other stress-causing, cortisol-promoting eating habits include skipping meals, eating large portions, or limiting yourself to a restrictive diet over a long period. You’re not off the hook if all you eat are salads every day, either, since that “roughage,” as Sinett calls it, “causes your digestive tract to go into overdrive very quickly” and triggers the muscular system, too. One way to fix that is by varying the kinds of food you eat day to day and breaking away from routine. Sinett himself used to eat high-fiber oatmeal every morning before developing bloating, stomach pain, and eventually a stiff neck.

We all lack energy from time to time but if it doesn’t improve then you should see your GP.

There are a number of conditions that can leave you feeling lethargic. Iron levels are one of the first things that can affect energy levels and cause tiredness.

An under-active thyroid is another cause of tiredness and the falling hormone levels that occur at the menopause.

Fatigue can also be a sign of diabetes.

If you are suffering from SAD (Seasonal Effective Disorder) this can also cause fatigue.

As well as the above, some medications can also cause lethargy, including beta blockers, some antihistamines, codeine-based painkillers and also some antidepressants. Also some sleeping tablets may help to get you through the night, some can cause daytime fatigue.

Of course, anxiety, stress and depression are also triggers for sapping energy levels. The best course of action is to go and visit your GP.

At this time of year one in eight of us can suffer from winter blues and one in 50 of us suffer from SAD through lack of sunlight.

Symptoms of SAD include fatigue and depression.

Its the sunlight that tells your brain to produce serotonin, which is needed to boost our mood and energy. Lack of it as autumn turns to winter causes an increase in the production of melatonin (which makes us sleepy) and a reduction in serotonin is what can cause depression.

One of the most obvious ways to treat SAD is to get outside in the daylight for at least 20 minutes a day but you can also invest in a light box. Light therapy is the most effective way of decreasing the symptoms. Also it is believed that eating foods rich in an amino acid called tryptophan increases the amount of serotonin in the brain.

Also they say that Australian research found that taking vitamin D supplements for only five days in late winter improved the mood of people with SAD. It can also prevent osteoporosis, support immunity and regulate weight. Of course the best way to get Vitamin D is through the effects of sunlight on bare skin. Amazingly they say that Vitamin D lasts for 60 days in the body so if you’ve been away for your annual holiday in the summer, it will mean your levels should be fine until November.

Other sources of Vitamin D can be found in oily fish and eggs, cheese and poultry.

Research also suggests that eating carb-rich foods helps the brain take up tryptophan. You can also find supplements and The Food Agency recommends taking 10mcg a day.